Supreme Court takes cert. in DV case

US v. Castleman. Here's the petition. It took re-reading to figure out the issue involved.

The Gun Control Act prohibition talks in terms of a person convicted of a crime, one element of which is use or threat of "force." NB: use of threat of force must be an element of the crime.

The State statute at issue (Tenn.) refers to assault which under the statute including knowingly or recklessly causing bodily injury (including a "cut, abrasion ... physical pain or temporarily illness..."

The last few of those could be inflicted without "force," by, e.g., slipping someone a drug. So is this a State crime which has an a element the use of force? Although this seems like debating how many angels can dance on the head of a pin, the petition notes the issue has caused a major Circuit split.